Economics
Sanctions on Venezuela Mean More Expensive American Roads
- Turkish asphalt replaces Venezuela supply after U.S. sanctions
- Road projects delayed by last year’s storms pushed back again
Vehicles move along freeways, Los Angeles.
Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg
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Repaving America’s highways costs the most in four years, thanks to an odd combination of geopolitics, Mother Nature and seismic shifts in oil markets.
The cost of asphalt has surged in the U.S., as sanctions on Venezuela cut off U.S. refiners’ supply of the thick crude especially good for making the sticky tar that covers roads. At the same time, there’s more demand to fix roads, after consecutive storm-filled springs pushed projects back into this summer.